And Percy couldn’t stop staring.
He shook himself from wandering thoughts of that hip and bowed his head. “Are you familiar with the tropics, then, Miss...?”
She offered her hand with a frown and pulled her fingers from his grasp before his lips grazed her glove. “I’ve read extensively on the islands and their culture. Virginia’s colder seasons aren’t conducive to plants of the tropical variety. So unless you’ve a greenhouse the size of the Crystal Palace, your boasts are unfounded.”
The lady was prickly, decidedly not taking his hint for introductions. Clever, then, too.
Percy found he could spare a moment more before he must leap into a knife fight. The delicious opponent in front ofhim deserved attention. And Percy never said ‘no’ to anything delicious.
“Reading is not the same as visiting.” His condescending tone was enough to send most women spitting fire. He added a flourish of his hand for extra effect. “Women should not speak of things they do not know.”
The lady didn’t so much as nibble at the bait. She grinned instead, her teeth flashing against lovely, full lips. “Neither should men.”
Percy decided then and there he had to have her.
Lady Blanchett gasped. “Daniella, that is no way to speak to a guest of the esteemed Duke of Lux.”
The woman, Daniella, offered a nod of acknowledgment. “Apologies, Aunt. Perhaps I was mistaken.” The glare she shot Percy’s way said she didn’t mean a word.
A thrill went through his chest. What a thinly veiled attempt at civility. If the woman was a niece of Lady Blanchett, that most likely made herLadyDaniella, theton’s much-anticipated debutante, the eldest daughter of Lord William Deime, Earl of Bromley. Yet there was no charm, no airs. The woman stared him down like they were rifled combatants on a battlefield, and he was in her scope.
He was delighted.
“Very good.” Lady Blanchett nodded. “Mr. Seymour, may I present my niece, Lady Daniella Deime. Daniella, this is Mr. Seymour from America, a friend of the Duke of Lux.”
This time, the lady had no choice but to offer her hand again, which Percy took with no small amount of satisfaction, and he brought her knuckles to his lips, where the heat of her skin through her glove sank into his soul.
“What of the animal variety?” husband-or-lover said. “With all the wilds in America, hunting must be a fine fare. What breeds do you keep?”
Lady Daniella’s hand was so tense, and the insulting limp wrist was such a tantalizing challenge. Percy wished the other man would choke on his lemonade for interrupting. “Breeds?”
“Dogs, of course.”
Percy reluctantly released Lady Daniella’s hand and refrained from rolling his eyes. A gentleman wouldn’t understand most people had to work for a living. Brutally hunting down innocent animals was of no appeal. Hunting down the guilty and treacherous of the human variety, however... “Can’t stand the beasts. I keep cats on my farm to control the vermin, but then they are barely tolerable in their illusive manners.”
“But dogs are so loyal, and so economic,” Lady Blanchett said.
“And far too fond of coconut for my taste.” Percy shot his next statement towards the lovely lady in blue. “Can’t get the dogs from the adjoining estate to stop digging up the coconuts as they drop and swallowing them whole. A terrible inconvenience.”
Lady Daniella stiffened, no doubt ready for another volley of insults at the ludicrous idea of coconuts being the size of seeds.
That hint of fiery temper earlier needed no kindling. If only he could invite her into a quiet room, he’d see how hot he could stoke those flames. Away from all these simple-minded automatons, he’d no doubt she’d set the entire world ablaze.
“Is that the Duke and Duchess of Camine leaving the ballroom?” Lady Blanchett asked.
Lady Daniella nodded, as if she knew firsthand. “Her Grace was overcome with the heat.”
“Will they return?” Lady Blanchett craned her neck to look over the heads of the crowd. “I have yet to offer my congratulations on their recent marriage.”
Percy, a head taller than most of the guests, watched Her Grace vanish into Lord Leishire’s library, a concerned Duke of Camine in tow, and right on time.
Duty called.
“Apologies, Lady Blanchett.” Percy bowed to his companions, his mind racing ahead to what came next. “I must take my leave.”
“So soon?” Lady Blanchett exclaimed with abject horror. “But you’ve not met anyone!”
“Alas, I depart tomorrow for America, and vessels are notorious for early starts on long voyages.” He took her offered hand and brushed a chaste kiss upon her knuckles. “Now that I’m privileged to know such charming women on this side of the ocean, I’ll be sure to visit more.”
